Postgraduate Course: Dissertation for MSc in Higher Education (REDU11065)

Course Outline
School	Moray House School of Education	College	College of Humanities and Social Science
Credit level (Normal year taken)	SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate)
Course type	Dissertation	Availability	Not available to visiting students
SCQF Credits	60	ECTS Credits	30
Summary	The dissertation element of this MSc provides students with an opportunity for in-depth investigation and analysis of a specific topic relating to higher education. This is a major study demanding a high level of individual application and commitment to research and enquiry. Students will be encouraged to build on and/or expand an area of study from within one or more of the core courses. Choice of dissertation topic should be in an area of interest to the student and/or of professional relevance.
Course description	ż stages in planning research and issues in research design ż understanding oneself as a researcher within a theoretical and epistemological framework ż ethical issues in conducting research ż undertaking systematic literature search ż compiling and reporting literature reviews ż approaches to the identification of appropriate research questions ż strategies and instruments for data collection (if appropriate) ż critical understanding of validity, reliability and the evaluation of evidence within the context of different research paradigms ż management, presentation and evaluation of evidence/analysis

Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites		Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations		Other requirements	None

Course Delivery Information
Not being delivered

Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to: 1. Specify a topic of enquiry suitable for a dissertation and justify its theoretical significance, professional relevance (if appropriate) and practical feasibility; 2. Identify and reflect critically on relevant literature, research reports and other scholarly evidence with specific reference to the research process used; 3. Collect and analyse evidence, justifying the approaches and techniques used, and identify the implications of these decisions in terms of the status of the evidence, and the findings based upon it; 4. Examine critically the contribution and limitations of the study undertaken in theoretical and applied terms with regard to the practices and roles of relevant professionals; 5. Demonstrate that the study complies with relevant ethical guidelines; 6. Present work, observing appropriate academic conventions in relation to style, tone.